The Arizona sentinel., 1887-12-17

People used to think that the life of
agold-hunter is jolly one; that when
he gets out of funds he simply retires
TO the nearest mountains, finds gold
or silver mine, returns in few days,
sells the property for large sum and
elbows i'm his easily-acquired wealth
against faro bank or loses it in trying
to master the intricacies of draw
poker After this he sallies forth as
before and ,refills his depleted purse.
The fact, however, is that the life of a
prospector is not easy or pleasant, but
rather one of incessant toll, innumer-
able hardships and disappointments.
Nor is he more given to gambling than
those who are engaged in other call
ings. In the spring-time, often with
no other companion than stubborn
pack-mule, which he leads along by
halter, the gold-hunter turns his back
on such civilization as border towns
can boast of and hides himself among
the awful solitudes of the mountains,
: where he remains, except when he
repairs to the nearest settlements to
procure fresh supplies, pursuing his
lonely and dangerous tasks until the
storms of winter compel him to seek
shelter again. among the habitations
of his fellow-men. If perchance he
should discover promising lead dur
ing his summer explorations, then he
builds himself snug cabin of logs, or,
IF ic inroh
hood. scoops out hole in the side of
a mountain, and, to use his own ex-
preston, ''camps on the prospect"
His diet consists of fat bacon, bread of
his own manufacture and coffee, oc-
casionally varied by roasted grouse. a
slice of venison or other game supplied
by his own trusty rife. A nd he makes
his nightly bed on the brown lap of
mother earth.
AS the gold-hunter ascends the slope
of the mountain which he has selected
as the scene of his explorations, he
notes every change in the structure or
the composition of the rocks. When
afavorable locality is reached, local
ity where the geological formation in
dicates the presence of gold, he stops
at the first spring of water, unpacks
his outfit, pitches his tent if he has
one, which is rarely the case, pickets
his tired mule, gathers a few loose
rocks and places them in the form of
horseshoe on the ground, to serve as
stove, and then, with bent head and
watchful eyes, carefully scans every
gulch and mountain side. prizes into
every nook and Granny in quest of these
signs which Mother Nature always
posts near the spot where she has hid,
den her precious treasures.
Far up on the rugged fl anks of that
storm-riven mountain the gold-hunter
breaks off apiece of rock from a ledge
and 10! it is fiecked with bright yell
low specks; not unlike that metal
which all mankind is so glad to
possess. His heart beats fast
as he examines the specimen. He
wets the bright specks with his tongue
and picks at them nervously with his
penknife They crumble at the touch
of that instrument and then he throws
the rock down with an angry gesture.
and mutters disappointedly: Pilgrim
gold. be gosh
Now he is down yonder in the gulch,
which seems as though it might be the
repository of vast amount of the yell
low metal, digging a hole in the
gravel. The trend of the rut is north
and south. Nature never piled up
drift in that manner, especially in a
ravine ~in this range of mountains
without inkling it with gold. 1t
was in just such spots as this that she
loved to secrete her most beautiful
metal whenever it was torn from its
native home in the rock by the SLOWLY
advancing glacier or the floods of by
gone ages. A little stream of water goes
singing down the gulch, and the tall
bunch grass bends gracefully over it
as if charmed by the song. Hard by
chipmunk sits as motlonless as a stone
at. the entrance. to its little hovel and
watches the intruder on its-domain
with the greatest curiosity. On the
opposite flank of the mountain
coyote skulks along in the manner of
us kind, while high above the eagle is